1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to shipping containers, in particular shipping containers that are fabricated at least in part from paper, paperboard and/or corrugated paperboard material. The present invention also relates to such containers that are readily openable without implements and/or are convertible from a shipping configuration, to a display configuration.
2. The Prior Art
In stores that deal in dry goods sold in their own individual containers, such as grocery stores, a traditional method for placing the goods on display would be for store personnel to open the shipping containers in which the goods have been shipped from the supplier, and individually place each item on the shelf, and arrange them neatly for presentation. Typically, such containers were often structures dedicated solely to a shipping function, and when opened, were either destroyed, or resulted in an open-topped container not well suited for merchandising functions.
However, this process of individual removal of goods from a shipping container, and placement on shelves, is relatively costly to the store in terms of personnel effort, time, wages, etc. Therefore, it has become desirable to reduce costs in converting goods packaged for shipping into a suitable format for display and shopping.
This has resulted in the development of a variety of containers which are configured to be convertible from a shipping configuration, to a display configuration, which permits the converted container to be placed directly upon a shelf, or floor display, without having to remove the individual product items from the container. Typically, this is accomplished by providing the container with removable portions of the container that create apertures through which customers may then help themselves to the products within the converted container.
Such convertible containers represent a challenge in that they must be readily convertible into a form presentable to customers, while at the same time maintaining certain shipping performance characteristics, suitable for the shipment of non-self-supporting or even fragile products. In order to reduce cost in opening and placement of the converted container, the container should be hand-convertible, without the use of a knife or other implement. At the same time, it is desirable to provide a converted display container that is relatively free of unsightly or inconvenient rough edges or debris.
However, such prior art convertible containers often are either lacking in the necessary shipping performance characteristics or, in order to provide such performance, even after conversion, have structural elements that remain in position and make access to the product less convenient than desired. Other container constructions may achieve one or both of the performance or convenience goals, but at the expense of an inefficient or simply excessive use of container material.
Retailers require packaging that provides maximum performance at a reasonable economic cost, but that is also capable of being easily converted into a merchandisable display package with a minimum of effort. Two-piece container designs of the type referred to, as “Bliss” containers are generally known, due to their economic balance of different materials. However, while some manufacturers have offered design options which include features that allow the containers to be modified into acceptable tray designs for merchandising, such prior art solutions have often been at the expense of the performance of the package, e.g., requiring perforations in the vertical support structures, which may compromise significant stacking strength and may negatively impact package integrity during distribution. Even after display conversion, many of the known prior art designs leave a large portion of the outer container intact, obscuring much of the product inside the shipper, compromising the overall intent of the display conversion features.
It is accordingly desirable to provide a shipping container that is convertible to a display configuration, that has improved shipping performance characteristics, together with enhanced ease of conversion, and improved “shopability” for the consumer.
These and other desirable characteristics of the present invention will become apparent in view of the present specification and drawings.